Kibble V Wet/Fresh

[Vanadis]

I’m trying to decide which food to feed my puppy. I’ve not got the puppy yet, she’s 6 weeks old so a couple of weeks. Obviously I understand I’ll feed it what the breeder was feeding to start. I don’t want to feed raw.

I was planning to feed kibble because my sister feeds her dog kibble and they take a portion of the daily allowance each morning to use as treats for training throughout the day. This seems to work really well, their dog is very well trained and not at all fat. Also enables them to use a higher value treat when needed.

But as I’ve been researching kibble I’ve come across Butternut Box which do the fresh food and then also Pure Pet Food which is freeze dried and the reconstituted with water before feeding. These claim to be more nutritious than kibble. They are more expensive, I can afford them but I’m just thinking about value for for money. Are they worth the extra expense?

Also if I did go down the fresh food route what would I use for treats? Presumably kibble would then be very boring in comparison so may not be enough for training? Does anyone have experience with this?

Could I do a mix of the fresh with kibble? How do you then know how much to feed?

I’m probably way overthinking this but I’m so excited to finally be getting my puppy, I just want what’s best for her.

[Firsttimedogowner]

Your dog might decide for you!!! I am the same as you - no money constraints just want what’s best for the dog. I got canagans which is a high quality kibble but he never really loved it - he’d eat it but not enough and never seemed excited about his food (we have him a month). I got a high quality wet food - the equivalent of butternut box where I am and we are transitioning over to it now and he is wolfing it’s down!!!!

I agree kibble is good for training and sometimes we throw it out in grass and he hunts around and gets it all but it it was more important to me that he enjoys his food. He also loves chicken breast and some ‘good boy’ tender chicken so we use that for training now. I’m hoping he won’t get fat but he was a bit too skinny before anyway so we don’t need to worry for now.

If I were you I’d get the canagans first and see how you get on. If our pup loved canagans I would’ve stuck with it. You can also mix the two but I feel we would lose track of how much he should be having so it’s easier to be on one.

[Laigny]

I don't know if you've already looked at them but we have been using "Pure Pet Food" for about 4 months now and our Shar Pei has never looked better! He used to have James Wellbeloved kibble and tripe/various other tinned meats but since our switch his coat has been so soft!!! His breed is prone to skin irritations ( amongst many other ailments! ) but he hasnt itched or scratched since. We did a two week trial ( they called it transition period ) and introduced the Pure food with his normal biscuits over the course of that time and if i remember right within about 3/4 days he was no longer interested in the biscuits so we managed to switch completely by then. We had considered raw feeding but just could not justify the time involved or the extra freezer space!

[Vanadis]

Yes, I looked at the Pure Pet Food. I really like the look of it, but I wasn’t sure if the price was justified as it’s one of the most expensive. What do you use for training treats if your dog doesn’t eat kibble?

[Laigny]

I did think they were quite expensive too so sent them an email beforehand so i could check a few things first and they explained their packs are actually four times the weight when they are made to serve/rehydrated and when i compared to his normal bag of biscuits this was actually closer to that than i realised so not too big a difference really. Theyve got some chicken treats that i use :-) there are others but i havent got round to trying those yet so will maybe get some ordered soon and see.

[midnightstar66]

I had a phone consultation with my vet while registering dpup and arranging vaccines. She recommended dry kibble as best for their teeth as well as being nutritionally complete. She wasn't really eating it so I'd been adding chicken breast or scrambled egg and she advised stopping this and lifting food after half an hour or so. This has had a great effect and she's now eating plenty. I give the egg as an occasional 4th meal now and chicken for high reward training

[BreastedBoobilyToTheStairs]

If you're feeding wet/fresh you'll need to be extra vigilant with their teeth. Wet food can sit around their teeth and they don't get the scraping mechanism they get with kibble or raw bones, but I haven't met a dog that doesn't like a good wet food meal!

Kibble largely depends on what you get and your dogs preference. We've cycled through a few different high quality kibbles and ours got bored after a half a bag or so and wouldn't touch it unless it was mixed with wet food. Then we changed to a new brand thinking after one bag he'd be bored again, and amazingly he loves it to the point we scatter feed every day and he goes absolutely bombing into the garden to find it! We're about 16kg in (two different flavours). We also use it as treats in flip boards/puzzle toys, and just for general treats through the day and he wolfs it down. His poos are perfect and his cost is absolutely gorgeous so it's clearly suiting him brilliantly. Long may it continue!

[GrumpyMiddleAgedWoman]

Our dogs have always had a mid-quality kibble with frequent scraps and veg peelings, occasional butchery offcuts and raw bones, and various training treats, cheese, sausage etc. A puppy might get a top grade kibble for a few months.

Our last dog lived to 15, and the current oldie is 12 with very good teeth. So IME they can do very well on a kibble-based diet. You can certainly mix kibble and fresh.

To assess how much your dog needs, just keep an eye on its body condition. If ours look a bit chunky, I cut down what I feed them for a week or so. If they're looking overly lean, I'll either up the quantity or put them on another food for a few weeks. For most breeds, you should be able to easily feel their ribs and the dog should have a defined waist when viewed from above.

[Vanadis]

Which is the best kibble to go for? I’ve been looking at Eden, Simpson’s, Millies Wolf Heart, Canagan, Barking Heads.
Also is it better to have an 80:20 kibble or is 60:40 perfectly adequate?

[GrumpyMiddleAgedWoman]

There is a website called All About Dog Food which ranks them.

But TBH I fed the youngster Canagan for a couple of months but now she's on Skinner's like the other one. The older dog has done well on it all his life.

[Vanadis]

Ah yes, I’ve looked on there the choice is overwhelming. Do I just pick one and see if puppy likes it? Or should I buy a selection of little bags and test which she prefers?

[PestymcPestFace]

Pestypup is on Fish4Dogs and loves it. She also has a topper of tinned / sardines /pigeon (don't ask) /whatever at dinner time.
Your sister has the right idea about using food as treats, make your dog earn /find their dinner.
All about dog food site is good.
Pay attention to how much food each brand recommends you feed. It really varies and has a big effect on cost. Cheaper is not always more cost efficient.

[GrumpyMiddleAgedWoman]

See which brands you can easily get hold of. Check them out on the dog food website. Pick one that's decent and affordable. Feed it to the dog.

I have never had a dog that didn't eat what I put in front of it. I thought Canagan was very good but it was pricey. Hence Skinner's, which is good value for what it is.

[Hovverry]

Living off kibble is like us eating dry cornflakes at every meal. I feed a variety of foods and only use kibble (Barking Heads) as rewards. I started off giving cheese or slices of sausage as high value rewards but he’s so greedy he’s just as happy with kibble.

[Vanadis]

Yeah, that’s what I was thinking. Do you find the kibble works fine as treats for training then? Not too dull?

[ShadowsInTheDarkness]

I switched our pup onto Millies wolfheart when he had been home a few days, and he really loves it. He has 4 training sessions around meal times with it and it's worked really well to get basic commands sorted. I also got some Millies turkey treats which are little boned shaped things, purely turkey and sweet potato (so no nasties) and use those for particular clever boy stuff like "leave it" when the dishwasher is open 😁

I find the dry food brilliant for puzzle toys too, and we got a snuffle mat which he loves.

[hoochymamgu]

Millie's wolfheart here for DD also. She's a Westie so has skin problems, she has the salmon and veg one and has been lovely and healthy so far.
Treats are dried sprats which she adores

[ThereIsNoSuchThingAsRoadTax]

Another vote for Mille's wolfheart. I tend to buy several different types on one of their small bag offers to give the dog some variety and once a week will split a tin of their wet food across a few meals. I get no complaints.

[ShadowsInTheDarkness]

Yes I buy 2 different types, having checked that they both have same feeding guidelines and then we mix them up. Makes for a bit of variety. Pup is a working sprocker so on the go constantly and is doing well on riverside at the moment. We have previously had the turkey and veg and hunter mix. I like that their website calculates based on breed and activity level and that we don't need to worry about changing food when he's older.

[Yorknees]

We use dry as recommended for our Yorkie's teeth.
But he doesn't like the bigger adult pieces.

We have been using Lily's Kitchen and he was great on puppy size. The adult size is rock hard (I tried it!).

Can anyone recommend a kibble in small pieces that's not too hard to bite?

We tried softening the Lily's Kitchen adult but he just won't eat it.

[Branleuse]

Id go for a good quality kibble for the sake of her teeth, and also its a pain to have a fussy dog that wont eat biscuits.
Ive gone through loads of brands though and have settled on crave
www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/dog-food-reviews/2022/crave-adult-dry